Call for joint administration of fisheries in the North

The Vice Governor of Murmansk, Vjatsjeslav Zilanov, who is also responsible for fisheries, has called for the establishment of a joint center for the administration and control of the fisheries in the Barents Sea. The joint fisheries commission meets on Monday. The Vice Governor of Murmansk, Vjatsjeslav Zilanov, who is also responsible for fisheries, has called for the establishment of a joint center for the administration and control of the fisheries in the Barents Sea.Zilanov is also former leader of the joint Norwegian-Russian Fisheries Commission.

In his opinion, it is all the unsolved questions between Norway and Russia about the fisheries administration which brought about the incident with the Russian trawler 'Elektron' last week.

Fisheries Minister Helga Pedersen is positive to the idea of expanding the cooperation with Russia.

- All efforts which could improve the cooperation between Norway and Russia with the aim to stop the problem of overtaxing the resources are positive, Pedersen says.

The joint Norwegian - Russian fisheries commission meets on Monday, to decide the quotas for next year.

On item on the agenda is the alleged Russian overfishing of arctic cod, estimated to be worth NOK 1 billion anually.

This would mean that every fourth cod caught by the Russians, has been caught illegally, according to NRK.